In drafting the Constitution, the authors who had lived in England under the tyranny of monarchs divided the new United States government into legislative, executive and judicial branches to dilute government abuse of power. The legislative branch obviously enjoyed priority by its ability to enact laws for the executive to administer. The judicial branch merely resolved "cases and controversies." This book summarizes these cases and explains the increasing emergence of the federal judicial branch exemplified predominately by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal and its infliction of damage to cultural, religious and social traditions of the country. Federal courts began intervening in state court decisions involving highly contentious issues shortly after the end of WW II. Although the Supreme Court led the way, the Ninth Circuit has written decisions on subjects never judicially envisioned by the Constitution, has overturned innumerable state court decisions, and invalidated state and federal legislation. The court has intruded on immigration law, criminal law, the death penalty, and written innumerable cases restricting religion, enforcing racial preferences, managing jails and prisons, endorsing same sex marriage, confirming abortion, and eviscerating a variety of other cultural and social traditions affecting the public.
About the Author: Lawrence Waddington, a retired judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court and former Assistant Attorney General for the State of California, and trial lawyer for the District Attorney's Office in Los Angeles County, has written numerous articles for publication in magazines and newspapers on Constitutional and criminal law issues. He has previously authored two books, one on the law of evidence and the other on Constitutional law. A trial lawyer in the District Attorney's Office, he prosecuted innumerable criminal cases and was subsequently promoted to head the Research and Training Department. In that capacity he wrote regular summaries on the law for prosecutors and authored the first search warrant manual for prosecutors. He directed a television series lecturing on Constitutional law to law enforcement officers throughout the state. During his 21years as a trial judge he presided over countless criminal and civil cases. Judge Waddington lectured frequently at the California Judges College and was awarded as a distinguished lecturer. He was also a faculty member of the National Judicial College and lectured to judges throughout the United States. A Fulbright scholar, Judge Waddington lectured to judges and lawyers on the American legal system in Italy and Russia. The judge cuts out "legal lingo" to enable non lawyers to understand the effect of 9th Circuit decisions but lawyers will enjoy the book too. Five years of research have gone into "Disorder in the Court" but the text will help the reader understand the judicial intrusion of the 9th Circuit in the lives of those who live under its jurisdiction